Cool Composure
by ElwoodWinchester
Summary: Jake and Elwood Blues are two big-shot boys living in a small-shot world. When Jake looses a bet and the streets get riled, they decide to take it out on his weak spot; Elwood. And the twelve year old, scrawny boy may act tough, but how will he fair when he and Jake get separated?
1. Chapter 1

It was three A.M when Elwood woke up that morning, sitting up and nearly hitting his head on the bunk stacked on top of his own, which belonged to none other than a Mr. Jake Blues. Jake, being fourteen, and Elwood being twelve, he always woke up before his brother. He swung his long legs, unusually long for a boy his age, over the bed and stood up, putting on his sunglasses. Then he had an idea. Elwood grabbed his harmonica, which was sometimes his only friend, and quietly climbed up the ladder until his mouth was right next to his brother's ear. He began to play, loud and clear, Jake's favorite blues song, which Curtis would sing to them each night. Jake sat straight up, shouting a curse, and hit his head on the ceiling. He looked around in a wild panic for a moment, then saw his brother and scowled. ''Damnit, Elwood!'' Jake shoved his younger brother away, causing him to fall back and land on his side. ''Morning, Jake!'' He rasped, recovering from his hard fall. The older brother grumbled and blinked, then put on his sunglasses and hopped down, not bothering to use the ladder. He helped his younger brother up. ''Jake, come on, they're selling that badass car down the street, and you can pass for sixteen, right?'' Elwood sounded so excited, which was rare for the normally mellow child, as he grabbed his brother's wrist. ''El, you can have a car when you're older. I'll buy you a Caddy, I promise.'' Jake ruffled the younger's hair, then grabbed Elwood's fedora, placing it on the younger's head. ''Hey, I bought that for you to match mine, you better fucking wear it.'' Elwood hung his head, nodding. ''The Penguin said that we have to get out of the orphanage today, 'cause it's gonna be in the papers.'' Jake nodded. ''Come on, I know somewhere we can go. It's a surprise.'' Elwood sighed and walked to the closet, getting down their suit jackets and handing one to Jake. ''Close your eyes, I gotta get some stuff together.'' Elwood, anxious, closed his eyes. Jake walked to the closet, getting two bathing suits and towels, then placed them in an indiscrete bag. ''Come on, let's split before Penguin gets pissed.'' Jake walked out the door, and Elwood followed, and the two worked their way out of the orphanage and onto the street.

''Hey, asshole, where's my money?!'' A voice reached after Jake and Elwood as they neared the pool. Elwood, not hearing them, ran ahead and started to get their place by the pool set up. Jake, however, turned to see a group of teens, around sixteen, approached. Jake took off, running towards his brother. ''El, keep your glasses on, and act like you don't know me.'' Elwood was confused, but only nodded, and sat back, getting out a book and taking his fedora off. The boys got closer, and eventually got up to the pool. Jake stood his ground, staring them down. Without saying a word, they approached him and two guys grabbed Jake's shoulders. Elwood looked up, slightly frightened. Then the leader of the group took a step towards Jake, then hit him in the stomach, hard enough to make Jake double over. Elwood lost it. He lunged at the kids, and Jake yelled, trying to move towards him. They quickly restrained both brothers, but not before Elwood managed to give the leader a punch to the nose. He only smirked. ''Joilet, this your brother?'' Jake didn't respond, he just glared. One of them gave Elwood a shake, and his sunglasses fell. His mismatched eyes, a dark brown and light green, stood out clearly. The leader laughed. ''A little freak brother, eh, Joilet? How about we do you a favor! You don't need a freak brother. Doubt he can even swim.'' He gave Elwood a shove, and he coughed, and they started to take off both of the brother's jackets. Jake, calm and collected, while Elwood seems tense. They tore off their shirts, and Elwood winced. The scars were there, ones he had been 'graced' with by bullies at their previous school. Jake noticed and frowned, while the boys just laughed. "Freak!" The leader nodded towards the pool, and they hauled a scared and shaken up Elwood towards the water, throwing him in. ''If you tread for three minutes, you get out!'' He smiled, faking innocence. Jake freaked, trying his hardest to get away, shouting and kicking. Elwood splashed around in the water, coughing and sputtering. One of his shoes kicked loose, and he could barely get above the surface. The kids continued to laugh. Jake went into hysterics. Elwood managed to make it to the edge of the pool, but one of the kids stepped forwards, stepping on his fingers. Elwood cried out and retracted his hand, then started to sink down, nose going underwater. The leader snapped, and the kids stepped back. Bubbles rose from where Elwood went under. Jake kicked the kid holding him in the crotch, but another stepped forwards and took his place. Elwood stopped moving. So did everyone around them. ''Fuck this, Man!'' The youngest, who Jake had kicked, took off, and the rest followed, the leader coming in last. Jake dove in, hauling Elwood to the surface and over the side of the pool, onto the concrete. ''El, come on, wake up! I'm gonna kill those bastards, but come on, Elwood, just.. Wake up!'' He shouted, slapping his brother. His head rolled to the side, limp. ''Shit, shit shit...'' Jake mumbled, and ran to the bag, grabbing his phone. ''911? Yeah, my name is Jake Blues, me and my brother got attacked, they threw him in a pool, he's not breathing… Just hurry, we're at St. Docussia pool, near the orphanage. Yeah, we live there, now hurry the hell UP!'' Jake shouted into the phone, then went back to his brother's side. The pool was empty, obscure, rarely used. It was Jake and Elwood's haven, where they played blues and dipped their feet in the water and read books, told jokes, and dreamed. ''El, wake up, please..'' Jake beat on his brother's chest, then started CPR, which he had learned from Curtis a year ago. Water dribbled out of Elwood's mouth. He heard sirens in the distance. Jake picked up the smaller, frail kid and ran, trying to get closer. People on the sidewalk gave him strange looks but he pushed through them, not caring. When he got to the ambulance, they loaded Elwood into the ambulance and took off, leaving Jake standing on the side of the road in shambles.

Ten minutes later, Jake made it to the orphanage, and ran to Curtis, who was playing his keyboard for some of the younger kids. He was still soaking wet, and in a wild rush. Curtis jumped up and lead Jake away, then squinted at him. ''Jake, what the hell? Where's your brother?'' Jake retold the story on autobot, his mind somewhere else. Curtis mumbled something obscene, then pulled Jake towards his car, loading him into the backseat and taking off towards the hospital.

\\\Hey! This is my first Blues Brothers fic, so I'd love to know what people think of it! I'm writing more chapters as you read, so yeah! Please comment/review, if you can spare the time! Disclaimer: I DONT OWN THE CHARACTERS!\\\


	2. Chapter 2

After twenty minutes of silence, interrupted only by Jake mumbling a weak 'Oh god, oh god, let him be fine..', they finally arrived at the hospital and Jake jumped out, running to the door. ''Elwood Blues, I'm looking for Elwood.'' Jake nearly shouted at the lady at the front desk. She tilted her head. ''Are you family?'' She asked, and Jake nodded. ''Room 903, 9th floor, but the record says that he has had another visitor already.'' Jake's breath caught as he raced up the hallway, getting to the elevator and went to floor nine. He found the room soon enough, only finding a sleepy Elwood, who had just woken up, and a note on the bedside table. ''El!'' Jake breathed a sigh of relief and pulled a chair up next to the bed, ignoring the note. ''Damnit, you idiot, you scared the fuck outta me!'' Elwood looked, confused, at his brother, and tilted his head. ''Jake? Am I in the joint?'' Jake shook his head. ''Hospital. You got beat pretty bad, idiot.'' Elwood merely blinked, mismatched eyes glittering in the light. ''What happened? I woke up, and they put a tube in my throat, and then they made me pass out.'' Jake shook his head and looked down. ''Some kids, I made a bet, cause I thought I could win. It was a hundred big ones, I would have bought you a bike for your birthday, like you wanted, and when I lost, I took off. They attacked us, shoved you in the pool, and you sunk like a rock. They freaked, when you went out they took off, and I pulled out my phone and called 911.'' Elwood looked shocked for a moment, then regained his composure. Jake got up, picking up the note, and reading it. ''Shit..''

 _Soon._

''El. You don't have a girl, do ya? One that wants to see you soon?'' Elwood shook his head. ''Not since we got kicked outta our last school,'' A confused Elwood responded. Jake shook his head and looked down, disturbed. ''Was anyone else here?'' Elwood shook his head again. ''Not while I was awake.'' Jake groaned and sat back down, putting his legs up on the bed. Elwood looked over, slightly disturbed. ''Jake, what the hell? Who was here-'' Jake cut him off. ''Just shut the fuck up for a moment, got it?'' Jake snapped for a moment, then regained his normal cool-suave nature. Jake handed Elwood the paper, trying not to let his brother know he was scared. Elwood looked over the paper, reading the same word over and over on the paper before exclaiming, ''Well, shit.'' Jake nodded in agreement, then he got up and walked to the door, locking it. ''We're just gonna stay here for a bit, got it?'' Elwood nodded again, silent. Jake sat back down and took off his jacket, hanging it on the back of his chair. He reached in his pocket and pulled out his backup pair of sunglasses, the cheap ones he hated to wear, and he held them out to his younger brother. ''Here. Take these.'' Elwood nodded in appreciation and put the glasses on, ashamed. ''Elwood, listen, not to go all chick-flick, but your eyes are just fine the wa-'' Elwood reached and punched his brother in the arm, hard. ''Please, just shut the fuck up, Jake.'' Jake opened his mouth to argue, but the door shook as someone tried to get in. ''Shit!'' Elwood exclaimed, and scrambled out of bed, falling on the floor. He started to cough, sputtering, and Jake ran to his side. ''Come on, Motorhead, breathe.'' Elwood took deep breaths, struggling for air. The door kept shaking. ''Joilet, get out here, give us the money!'' Jake winced and helped his brother back into bed, then he went to the door, placing his chair in front of it. ''Listen, El, just act asleep.'' Elwood looked confused, then tried to stand, nearly falling again. ''Jak-'' Jake cut him off with a motion of his arm as he put a hand on the door. ''Alright, alright, come on, just keep it down, wouldja?'' Jake moved the chair and opened the door and Elwood went limp, closing his eyes and steadying his breathing. The kids rushed in. "Joilet, listen, you better have my money, or I swear to god we'll do something worse then death to you." The boy grumbled. Elwood shook slightly, and Jake sighed. "Listen, Dea-" The boy punched him in the face, straight in the mouth. Jake spat out blood. One of the boys walked over to Elwood's bed, then went to the machines hooked up to him and turned it all to zero, cutting off the fuse that was trading the water in Elwood with blood and air. "Damnit, John, turn that back on!" Jake shouted. Elwood couldn't pretend anymore, he could barely get air. He sat up, gasping for air, and a kid with a leather glove on put a hand over his mouth and nose. "Do you know how it feels to loose a brother, Joilet? Cause I do. It sucks. We could get rid of him, ruin you two's little happy, blues band dreams you're always goin' on about." Elwood thrashed, pushing the nurse button in his panic. "John! Let him go!" Jake yelled, making a mad attempt to get to his brother. Elwood collapsed back onto the bed, and Jake broke down, loosing reason for a moment. "Damnit!" John, who was holding Elwood down, stepped back. "Did I actually...?" He was about to continue when nurses burst into the room, being called by the button. Two boys immediately let go of Jake and he ran to Elwood, panicking. "El, wake up, damnit!" The hospital security showed up, ushering the crowd out of the room. After a minute of the doctors working frantically over the young boy, he took a breath. He was pale, and shaky, but alive. They agreed to dispatch Elwood in an hour, and the nurses left the room. Elwood immediately turned on Jake. "Man, we gotta fix this, and fast." Jake nodded, then pulled up his suitcase, pulling their portable radio out. Without a word he turned it on and kicked his feet up on the bed, and both fell asleep after a long, terrifying, straining, horrendous day. But for now, they had each other.

/That corny end tho! Second Chapter in the bag! Please rate and comment anything you want to see happen next to Jake and Elwood/Motorhead (if anyone gets that I will be forever happeh :3) I was thinking Elwood's birthday? :D/


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey, Motorhead, wake up, we gotta big day." Jake hung down in front of his brother, off of his bunk. Elwood had been asleep ninety percent of the time since the incident, and the time they spent inside was quiet and timid, only saying 'yes' and 'no' to select, important people. Jake was one of them, but he still barely opening up to him, and today, his birthday, is what he hoped would be an exception."El, come on, wake the hell up!" Elwood groaned and rolled over, pulling his pillow over his head. "Elwood, come on man, get up!" Elwood shook his head as Jake hopped down, and kept his head buried. "No." Jake sighed. "Man, come on, it's your birthday!" Elwood looked up, then put on his sunglasses and hat. "I don't care, Jake. You go have breakfast, or whatever." Elwood shook his head and picked up his harmonica, beginning to play. Jake sighed and shook his head, then smacked Elwood on the upside of the head, hard. "Snap the fuck outta it, I bought tickets to the raceway down south a bit," Jake snapped, then regained his poker face. "Just hurry up, I didn't buy tickets for nothin'." Elwood looked surprised, but nodded, and he got up and put his suit jacket on. Jake looked approving, and he held out a small box to Elwood. "Here, happy fuckin' birthday, ya mute." Elwood nodded and smiled slightly. "Thanks." He mumbled, and took the box, opening it. Inside was a brand new chrome harmonica and new sunglasses, the expensive kind that Elwood liked. Elwood looked shocked, then his smile widened, and he pulled his brother into a quick hug before he switched his sunglasses and put his old harmonica in his desk, with the rest of his momentos. Jake nodded and straightened his tie, then produced a sandwich bag with four pieces of toast and tossed it to Elwood. "Breakfast." Jake nodded, then sat, waiting for his brother to get ready. After a couple of minutes, Elwood hauled his backpack up on his shoulder, (He had traded it for the briefcase for the moment being; it was a long walk), and he nodded. "Come on." Jake walked out the door as Elwood scuffled out behind him, not wanting to go outside but wanting to see the race.

They saw a blues band about halfway there. It consisted of two trumpets, tuba, sax, harmonica, keyboard, bass, and guitar, and they were playing blues on the street corner. Elwood, who had been walking with his head down and shuffling his feet, looked up and hurried towards the sound, Jake in pursuit. They were there in a matter of seconds, and Elwood immediately dropped his bag and worked his way into the dancing crowd. Jake simply grabbed the bag and stepped back, watching as Elwood froze when a girl looked at him. Jake smirked as he watched his younger brother awkwardly move towards the girl and start dancing and talking with her. About ten minutes later, she kissed him on the cheek and ran towards the corner, and Elwood came walking out in a daze, rubbing his cheek. Jake grinned and grabbed Elwood and took off down the street. When they got a safe distance, Jake stopped. "I want her name, age, school, and if you like her." It was their standard routine. Elwood blushed slightly. "Allie, she's thirteen, she goes to our school, and yeah." Jake narrowed his eyes then looked at his watch. "Shit, we gotta hurry!" He and Elwood took off down the street.

The race was good. The food was better. The look on Elwood's face when he got picked for the test drive was priceless. Jake smiled as his plan went into action. He had contacted and paid the driver to pick one person to go with him at the end for three laps around the track, and made sure he picked Elwood. When his seat number got called out, Elwood jumped to his feet and ran down the steps, tie flying over his shoulder. He climbed in the car and slammed the door, and was admiring the car from the inside. They did the three laps and when Elwood came out, he ran back to Jake and sat down, trying to contain his excitement. "One more thing, Motorhead," Jake said. Elwood looked over in confusion. "We got our first gig. Happy fuckin' birthday." Elwood's shoulders tensed, then he broke out into a smile. "Fuck yeah!" He exclaimed, and that evening they got back to the orphanage tired, grinning, and practicing their duet of Sweet Home Chicago.

/Alright! Chapter 3 in the bag! I feed off of suggestions, so please leave some ideas!/


	4. Chapter 4

_Backstage was an odd word._ At least that's what Elwood thought as he paced the small green room at the back of the bar. _The Grey Bird, what kind of name is that? Damn, what if my harmonica breaks, what if.._ He was interrupted as Jake burst into the room, ten minutes late. Elwood looked up, then looked at the clock. _Three minutes._ Jake took in his brother's state, then walked over, straightening Elwood's tie. "Come on. We gotta meet with the band." Elwood looked down then nodded, heading for the door. As he approached the door, a voice shocked him out of his trance like state. "Elwood!" He whirled around. "Alli!" He smiled politely, and Jake sniggered, patting Elwood on the back before walking ahead. Elwood and Alli talked for a few minutes before someone walked up behind her. "Elwood, meet my boyfriend Will." The color drained from Elwood's face, and he tried to be polite, before hurrying to the stage.

"Ladies and gents, may I present the all-star Blues Brothers Showband and Revue!" Elwood said into the mic, waving an arm as the band walked onstage and immediately started to play. Jake came last, a knife in his hand, and Elwood smiled slightly. This was the night; him and Jake had decided to become blood brothers a long time ago, and now was the time. As he stepped to the beat, Jake made a shallow cut in his hand. When he got to Elwood, the younger brother took the knife, cutting into his own hand. They looked at each other and exchanged a brief smile before Elwood pulled his brother into a hug, mashing their hands together and holding them up high. They kept it that way for a couple of moments, before pulling away, Elwood pulling out a harmonica. They launched into the first song they'd ever play with the band, and they could both sense the beginnings of a new era in their lives. As true brothers.

"Ah, fuck!" Elwood grumbled as the needle implanted the ink into his knuckles. Jake was sitting next to him, a similar string of curses coming out of his own mouth. If the Penguin were here, they'd be dead by now. Jake's tattoo was over before Elwood's, but the elder brother sat patiently next to the smaller, staring at the name printed on his knuckles. When they had finished and paid, they started the walk back to the orphanage. They passed the pool, and Elwood turned his gaze to the ground as he saw the group standing by it laughing. They noticed the brothers, and immediately started yelling. "Fuck off!" Jake yelled, flipping them off. Big mistake. The group ran towards the brothers of blues. Jake made it to the alley, Elwood.. Well, he didn't. The bullies chased after him, and he was forced to make a turn down a street he'd never been on. The sun eventually set, and Elwood sunk to the ground in the alleyway, pulling out his harmonica, and pouring his emotions into it past the cold, rainy Chicago night.


End file.
